The Claim of Right is an Act passed by the Parliament of Scotland in April 1689. It is one of the key documents of Scottish constitutional law.

Background

In the Glorious Revolution, William of Orange landed with his army in England on November 5, 1688. King James VII of Scotland, who was also King of England and Ireland as James II, attempted to resist the invasion. He then sent representatives to negotiate, and he finally fled England on December 23, 1688.

Whilst the Convention Parliament in England declared that James, as King of England, had abdicated the Government, and issued a English Bill of Rights on February 13, 1689 offering the Crown of England to William and Mary, the Scots found themselves facing a more difficult constitutional problem. As James had not been present in Scotland during the crisis and had not fled from Scottish territory in December, it would be highly dubious to claim that he had 'abdicated' the Scottish throne.

Process

Therefore, a Convention of the Scottish Estate met to consider letters received on March 16, 1689 from the two contenders for the Crown. On April 4 they voted to remove James VII from office, drawing on George Buchanan's argument on the contractual nature of monarchy.

Later that month, the Convention adopted the Claim of Right and the Article of Grievances, enumerating what they saw as the contemporary requirements of Scottish constitutional law. It also declared that, because of his actions in violation of these laws, James had forfeited the Scottish throne.

The Convention proceeded to offer the crown on the basis of these document to William and Mary, who accepted it on May 11, 1689, and were proclaimed King and Queen of the Scots as William II and Mary II, though with subsequent controversy over whether the Claim of Right articles against Episcopacy were fully accepted by the new monarchy.

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